Biography

Born in Brisbane, Australia, in 1957, Janet was raised in an Irish Catholic family with three brothers. Her father's work as a parasitologist took them to Washington (USA) and finally back to Queensland.

Janet gained A-levels in Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics before studying English and Journalism at…more

Janet provided commentaries for the DVD releases of Doctor Who stories: Logopolis, Earthshock, Resurrection of the Daleks, Castrovalva, The Visitation, Black Orchid, Warriors Of The Deep and Four To Doomsday.

Quotes

Janet Fielding: I'm on the board of Women In Film And Television and I ran it for the first four years. I was one of the people who set it up and I ran it for the first four years. I was angry about what was happening because I thought that, actually, just as you're beginning to learn what you're doing, know what you're doing, it's like somebody's turned the tap off. And that was true for women generally and still is much truer for the women than it is for the men. Much, much truer. And I was angry about it. And when I'm angry, I tend to do something about it. And… so I decided that the world needed to change.

Janet Fielding: (about her interview for Doctor Who) The producer, John Nathan-Turner, looked me up and down and asked how tall I was. I replied in my best Australian accent, "I'm five feet two, the minimum height for an airline hostess in Australia. I thought about being one once, so I checked it out." Then I took a breath. You see, I knew they were looking for an Australian air hostess in the series, and of course I was lying through my teeth - Australian air hostesses have to be much taller. I don't think he believed me, but I got the job!

Janet Fielding: I'm descended from convicts. I am, actually. My great-great-grandmother was transported for stealing two geese and her husband was transported for stealing a bolt of cloth. So, my family go back in Australia quite a long way.

Janet Fielding: (about Doctor Who) What happened was that it became family viewing, and the girls became something for the dads to watch, and that was told to you when you joined the programme in no uncertain terms.

(After Janet's departure from Doctor Who, it was announced that the next story would be filmed abroad)Janet Fielding: Three years on that bloody show and I'm written out just before they go swanning off to Lanzarote! Isn't that great?

Janet Fielding: There is a difference between 'personality' and 'character'. Character and personality are not the same thing. Tegan was a personality- the kind of slightly grumpy, brash Australian- the Lucy in space. That's not a character. She wasn't well-served.

Janet Fielding: I'd had a small taste of fame with Doctor Who and that was enough. You have to have quite a thick skin, and I don't know that I'm very good at that. I kind of continued to act, but it wasn't really happening. I thought, 'I don't know if I want this enough.' I decided that it wasn't for me.

Janet Fielding: Political correctness - which is a pejorative term, unfortunately- doesn't spring from a cosmetic dressing-up of something; it springs from the purpose of the plot function that the character has. Who wants to identify with a woman who is stupid enough to climb a cliff in two-inch high-heels and a tight skirt?

Janet Fielding: I absolutely embrace the term feminist- completely and utterly. Look it up in the dictionary! It means that you believe in equal rights for women. Now, that belief comes in all sorts of guises. I happen to be the sort of feminist that, you know, wears a bra and mascara. It's not that I dislike men. I don't at all. They have their uses!

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